HomeMy WebLinkAboutBROWNS ON HOWES - PDP/FDP - FDP140019 - REPORTS - RECOMMENDATION/REPORTITEM NO _________________
HEARING DATE January 22, 2015 _
STAFF Seth Lorson__ ____
ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING
Planning Services 281 N College Ave – PO Box 580 – Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580
fcgov.com/developmentreview/ 970.221.6750
STAFF REPORT
PROJECT: Brownes on Howes FDP #140019
APPLICANT: Christian and Robin Bachelet
Maxiimo Development
706 South College Avenue #201
Fort Collins CO, 80524
OWNER: Same
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
This project proposes to construct six single-family attached dwelling units in two 3-story
buildings. The buildings are oriented with front doors facing south in a row house style
connected with a common sidewalk. Each unit will have a two-car garage, and outdoor
patio space along the south side and on the roof. Access will be provided by a through-
drive connecting Howes Street to the alley.
The site (315 North Howes) is located directly north of the “Terracon” building at the
northwest corner of Howes and Maple Streets (301 North Howes) which currently
houses Northern Engineering. Directly north of the development site is a single-family
detached house (323 North Howes) which was built in 1932 but is not individually
eligible for landmark designation.
The entire block is located in the Downtown (D) District – Civic Center Sub-district and
the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Overlay Zone. Single-family attached
dwellings with up to four units per building are permitted in the Downtown District by
administrative review by a Hearing Officer (Type 1).
The project is requesting two Modifications of Standards:
1. Use of cement fiber lap siding on the third story façade (Sec. 4.16(D)(5)(e)); and
2. Side setback reduction for the drive aisle from 5 feet to 1’-4” (Sec. 3.2.2(J)).
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RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of Brownes on Howes FDP #140019.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The proposed design is a result of many iterations of site context and best practices
review, examination of code requirements and, input from multiple design professionals.
The developer utilized the City’s Historic Preservation Design Assistance program
which provides funding to resource an approved architect. The buildings’ design is in
the tradition of the brownstone row houses prominent in East Coast cities, notably New
York and Boston. The front doors are oriented toward the office building (south) and
united by a common sidewalk and a consistent pattern of steps and porches creating
covered stoops both vertically up to the front door and down to the guest patio. The
front of each unit has a protruding bay window box framed in a smooth cement fiber trim
as seen in historic brownstones. The buildings are proposed to be constructed primarily
of brick with accents of precast concrete, metal railings, and cement fiber lap siding.
The site is located at the edge of the Downtown District abutting a historic single-family
neighborhood. This edge condition requires a special sensitivity to the Downtown civic
and commercial fabric to the east and the historic residential pattern to the west. The
use of brick on the first two stories and lap siding on the third gives a nod to each of the
prominent patterns contributing to the area’s character.
Staff finds that the proposed development complies with all standards of the land use
code, most notably Section 3.5.1 Building and Project Compatibility, with the exception
of the requested modification of standards which are considered nominal and
inconsequential when considered from the perspective of the entire development plan.
COMMENTS:
1. Surrounding Zoning and Land Uses.
Surrounding zoning and land uses are as follows:
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Direction Zone District Existing Land Uses
North Downtown (D) & Neighborhood
Conservation Buffer (NCB) Residential: Single-family detached
South Downtown (D) Office: “Terracon” building & Civic: City
Hall
East Downtown (D) Civic: City Trolley Barn & Retail: Eco
Thrift
West Downtown (D) & Neighborhood
Conservation Buffer (NCB) Residential: Single-family detached
2. Compliance with Division 4.16 - Applicable Downtown Zone District Standards.
Staff finds that the Brownes on Howes complies with the applicable standards in
Division 4.16 Downtown District – Civic Center Subdistrict, as explained below.
Section 4.16 (A) Purpose:
The purpose of the Downtown District is as follows:
315 North
Howes St.
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The Downtown District is intended to provide a concentration of retail, civic, office and
cultural uses in addition to complementary uses such as hotels, entertainment and
housing. It is divided into three (3) subdistricts as depicted on Figure 18. The
development standards for the Downtown District are intended to encourage a mix of
activity in the area while providing for quality development that maintains a sense of
history, human scale and pedestrian-oriented character.
• The proposed buildings contribute to the downtown’s housing stock and maintain
the historic human scale and pedestrian-oriented character.
Section 4.16(B) - Permitted Use:
The proposed single-family attached dwellings (up to four units per building) are
permitted in the Downtown District by administrative review by a Hearing Officer (Type
1).
Section 4.16(D) – Building Standards:
(1) Setback from Streets. This standard requires a “landscaped setback” for all block
faces west of Mason Street.
• The proposed frontage along Howes Street has a robustly landscaped area with
grass turf, ornamental grasses, evergreen and deciduous shrubs, perennials,
and a deciduous tree.
(2) Building Height. The maximum building height for this block is 3 – 4 stories, +/-
45 feet.
• The proposed buildings are 3 stories, 38 feet in height.
(5) Building Character and Facades. This standard requires that buildings have
architectural interest, encourage outdoor activity, and are constructed with high-
quality materials.
• The proposed buildings are constructed primarily of brick with accents of precast
concrete, metal railings, and cement fiber lap siding. The use of cement fiber lap
siding requires a modification to this standard (4.16(D)(5)(e)) which is discussed
later in the staff report.
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• The buildings incorporate a courtyard patio on the ground floor, a covered stoop
on the second level, a terrace on the third level along the south side, and roof
decks to encourage outdoor activity and interaction.
• Each unit is offset from the next with vertical articulation, clearly identified stoops,
and bay windows framed in protruding window boxes. A three-dimensional
cornice is featured atop the roofs and the window boxes to provide architectural
interest.
3. Compliance with Article Three – General Development Standards:
Staff finds that Brownes on Howes complies with the applicable General Development
Standards, as explained below.
Section 3.2.1 – Landscaping and Tree Protection:
Standards in this section require a fully developed landscape plan that addresses
relationships of landscaping to the street, the building, abutting properties, and users on
site.
• All areas of the site not paved for pedestrian and vehicular access are
landscaped.
• Two Siberian Elm trees are proposed to be preserved: one 13” caliper & one 7”
caliper. The 13” tree is in the planting strip between the sidewalk and Howes
Street and another street tree will be planted along the Howes frontage to comply
with the street tree standard.
Section 3.2.2 – Access, Circulation and Parking:
Standards in this section require safe, convenient, efficient, parking and circulation
improvements that add to the attractiveness of the development.
Attached dwellings in the TOD Overlay Zone are required to provide 1.4 parking spaces
per 3-bedroom unit.
• The project proposes six 3-bedroom units requiring a total of 8.4 parking spaces.
Each unit contains a 2-car garage providing a total of 12 parking spaces.
Section 3.2.2(C)(4) – Bicycle Parking Space Requirements:
This standard requires at least one bicycle parking space per bedroom for a total of 18
spaces. 60% or 10.8 spaces must be enclosed and 40% or 7.2 spaces must be fixed
(meaning traditional exterior bicycle racks).
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• The project is providing 3 bicycle parking spaces in each garage for a total of 18
enclosed bicycle parking spaces; and 8 fixed bicycle parking spaces for a project
total of 26 bicycle parking spaces.
Section 3.2.4 – Site Lighting:
The purpose of this section is for a project to ensure that the functional and security
needs of a project are met in a way that does not adversely affect the adjacent
properties and neighborhood.
• All lighting is down-directional with cutoff fixtures. No foot-candles levels exceed
one-tenth as measured 20 feet from property lines as required under this
standard.
Section 3.4.7 – Historic and Cultural Resources
Section 3.4.7 (F)(6) states: “In its consideration of the approval of plans for properties
containing or adjacent to sites, structure, objects or districts that: (a) have been deter-
mined to be or potentially be individually eligible for local landmark designation or for
individual listing in the National Register of Historic Places or the State Register of
Historic Properties, or (b) are officially designated as a local or state landmark or are
listed on the National Register of Historic Places or (c) are located within a officially
designated national, state or local historic district or area, the decision maker shall
receive and consider a written recommendation from the Landmark Preservation
Commission unless the Director has issued a written determination that the plans would
not have a significant impact on the individual eligibility or potential individual eligibility
of the site, structure, object or district.”
• The Director of Community Development and Neighborhood Services has
reviewed the proposed plans for the project at 315 North Howes Street and
determined the project will not have a significant impact on the individual
eligibility or potential individual eligibility of adjacent sites.
Section 3.5.1 – Building and Project Compatibility:
Standards in this Section require compatibility with the context of the surrounding area
in terms of building size, massing proportions, design character and building materials.
Where the established character of the relevant area is not definitively established, or is
not consistent with the purposes of the Land Use Code, projects must set an enhanced
standard appropriate for the area.
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• The project site is in the Downtown District but is at the edge of a commercial-
civic area and the adjacent single-family residential neighborhood. Section
3.5.1(B) requires that building materials have color shades and textures similar to
those existing in the immediate area of the proposed development. The project is
primarily constructed with brick as seen in the abutting “Terracon” building, City
Hall (north of Maple Street), and the Trolley Barn (east across Howes Street).
The third story is constructed with a cement fiber lap siding which is
indistinguishable from wood siding. Wood siding is found in all the single-family
houses to the west and the house abutting to the north.
• Section 3.5.1(C) requires that buildings shall either be similar in size and height,
or, if larger, be articulated and subdivided into massing that is proportional to the
mass and scale of other structures on the block face. The buildings adjacent are
one and two story in height and of varying size and character. The proposed
buildings are three stories and incorporate features to reduce their sense of mass
such as a strong two story break in material from a heavy brick to a light lap
siding, and step backs on the third story in both the north and south directions.
Section 3.5.2 – Residential Building Standards:
This section is intended to promote variety, visual interest and pedestrian-oriented
streets in residential development.
• The required setback from Howes Street is 15 feet from the public right-of-way.
The proposed buildings are setback 20’-8”.
• In this section a high priority is placed on orienting building entryways toward
adjacent streets. The easternmost unit orients its tiered stairwell toward Howes
Street and provides a stoop abutting the sidewalk. Due to the long east-west
shape of the lot and the need for vehicular access off of Howes, most of the units
face onto a common sidewalk that runs along the south property line.
4. Compliance with Modification of Standards (Division 2.8)
The decision maker is empowered to grant modifications to the General Development
Standards contained in Article 3 and the Land Use Standards and Development
Standards contained in Article 4 and any separation or proximity standards that are
established as a specific measurement of distance in the District Permitted Uses
contained in Article 4.
In order to grant a modification of standard, the decision maker must find that the
modification is not detrimental to the public good, and that:
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(1) the plan as submitted will promote the general purpose of the standard for which the
modification is requested equally well or better than would a plan which complies with
the standard for which a modification is requested; or
(2) the granting of a modification from the strict application of any standard would,
without impairing the intent and purpose of this Land Use Code, substantially alleviate
an existing, defined and described problem of city-wide concern or would result in a
substantial benefit to the city by reason of the fact that the proposed project would
substantially address an important community need specifically and expressly defined
and described in the city's Comprehensive Plan or in an adopted policy, ordinance or
resolution of the City Council, and the strict application of such a standard would render
the project practically infeasible; or
(3) by reason of exceptional physical conditions or other extraordinary and exceptional
situations, unique to such property, including, but not limited to, physical conditions such
as exceptional narrowness, shallowness or topography, or physical conditions which
hinder the owner's ability to install a solar energy system, the strict application of the
standard sought to be modified would result in unusual and exceptional practical
difficulties, or exceptional or undue hardship upon the owner of such property, provided
that such difficulties or hardship are not caused by the act or omission of the applicant;
or
(4) the plan as submitted will not diverge from the standards of the Land Use Code that
are authorized by this Division to be modified except in a nominal, inconsequential way
when considered from the perspective of the entire development plan, and will continue
to advance the purposes of the Land Use Code as contained in Section 1.2.2.
Modification Request – Section 4.16(D)(5)(e)
The applicant requests a modification to the standard that reads:
All street-facing facades shall be constructed of high quality exterior materials for the full
height of the building. Such materials, with the exception of glazing, shall include stone,
brick, clay units, terra cotta, architectural pre-cast concrete, cast stone, prefabricated
brick panels, architectural metals or any combination thereof.
The third story of the buildings are proposed to be constructed with a cement fiber lap
siding.
• Staff finds that the request is not detrimental to the public good, and that the
granting of the modification will not diverge from the standards of the Land Use
Code except in a nominal and inconsequential way (4). The vast majority of the
buildings are proposed to be constructed with brick which is a permitted material.
Additionally, the material modification lends to the project meeting other
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standards in the code that reference compatibility with adjacent neighborhood
character.
Modification Request – Section 3.2.2(J)
The applicant requests a modification to the standard that reads:
Any vehicular use area containing six (6) or more parking spaces or one thousand eight
hundred (1,800) or more square feet shall be set back from the street right-of-way and
the side and rear yard lot line (except a lot line between buildings or uses with collective
parking) consistent with the provisions of this Section, according to the following table:
Minimum Average of
Entire Landscaped
Setback Area (feet)
Minimum Width of
Setback at Any Point
(feet)
Along an arterial street 15 5
Along a nonarterial street 10 5
Along a lot line
*
5 5
The proposed landscape setback along the north property line and the vehicular drive
aisle is an area that tapers from 2’-4” to 1’-4”.
• Staff finds that the request is not detrimental to the public good, and that the
granting of the modification will not diverge from the standards of the Land Use
Code except in a nominal and inconsequential way (4). The area is proposed to
utilize small trees, shrubs, and a vine-covered fence to provide a screen between
the drive aisle and the neighboring property. Additionally, the site layout that
proposes the drive aisle along the north edge of the property creates greater
separation between the buildings and the residential neighbor’s property. In this
site plan, the proposed buildings are 25 feet from the property line and 40 feet
from the existing single-family house.
FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSION:
In evaluating the request for Brownes on Howes FDP #140019, staff makes the
following finding of fact and conclusions:
1. The request for a modification of standard to permit use of cement fiber lap siding
on the third story façade (Sec. 4.16(D)(5)(e)) is not detrimental to the public
good, and that the granting of the modification will not diverge from the standards
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of the Land Use Code except in a nominal and inconsequential way as the
majority of the buildings are constructed with permitted materials.
2. The request for a modification of standard to permit a side setback reduction for
the drive aisle from 5 feet to 1’-4” (Sec. 3.2.2(J)) is not detrimental to the public
good, and that the granting of the modification will not diverge from the standards
of the Land Use Code except in a nominal and inconsequential way in that the
proposal provides adequate buffering with fencing and landscape material and
allows for a site plan that further separates the proposed building from the
existing neighboring house.
3. The Project Development Plan contains permitted uses and complies with the
applicable land development standards of the Downtown District – Civic Center
Subdistrict in Article 4, Division 4.16 of the Land Use Code.
4. The Project Development Plan complies with the applicable General
Development Standards of Article 3 of the Land Use Code with the exception of
the requested modifications of standards.
5. The Project Development Plan complies with the applicable procedural and
administrative requirements of Article 2 of the Land Use Code.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of Brownes on Howes FDP #140019.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Site, Landscape, and Photometric Plans
2. Building Elevations
3. Perspective Renderings
4. Modification Requests
5. Director Letter RE: Historic and Cultural Resource Section 3.4.7 (F)(6)